Choudhary Prem Singh (20 December 1932 – 12 December 2017) was an Indian politician from

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

. He contested his first election from Ambedkar Nagar in 1958, and made a Guinness World Record of Continuously Winning 11 elections from Same Party & Same Constituency. He served as Speaker of Delhi Legislative Assembly two times. He also held several ministries. He also served as the president of the

Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC) is the Pradesh Congress Committee (state wing) of the Indian National Congress (INC) serving in the union territory of Delhi. It is responsible for organizing and coordinating the party's activities and ca ...

three times. Prem Singh was elected to the

Municipal Corporation of Delhi Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD; ISO: ''Dillī Nagara Nigama'') is the municipal corporation that governs most of Delhi, India. The MCD is among the largest municipal bodies in the world providing civic services to a population of about 20 ...

(MCD) in 1958 and 1962. He was then elected to the Metropolitan Council of Delhi four times during 1972–1983. He was elected to the

Delhi Legislative Assembly The Legislative Assembly of the National Capital Territory of Delhi is the unicameral legislature of the union territory of Delhi in India. Delhi Legislative Assembly is the legislative arm of the Government of Delhi. At present, it consists ...

four times in a row during 1993–2008. His name features in the

Limca Book of Records The ''Limca Book of Records'' is an annual reference book published in India documenting world records held by Indians. The records are further categorised into education, literature, agriculture, medical science, business, sports, nature, adve ...

for winning 10 consecutive elections from the same constituency and the same party. He has also served on the

and the

All India Congress Committee The All India Congress Committee (AICC) is the presidium or the central decision-making assembly of the Indian National Congress. It is composed of members elected from States and union territories of India, state-level Pradesh Congress Commit ...

Early life

Prem Singh was born in Jat family at Lado Sarai,

. His father, Chaudhary Himmat Singh was a Congress party worker and a participant in the

Indian Independence movement The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events in South Asia with the ultimate aim of ending British Raj, British colonial rule. It lasted until 1947, when the Indian Independence Act 1947 was passed. The first nationalistic ...

. Prem Singh graduated in science from Delhi College (now

Zakir Husain Delhi College Zakir Husain Delhi College (formerly known as Zakir Husain College, Anglo Arabic College, and Delhi College), founded in 1696, is the oldest existing educational institution in India, and is a constituent college of the University of Delhi, a ...

) in 1952.

Political career

Prem Singh joined the Indian National Congress in 1952, at the insistence of his mentor C. Krishnan Nair (CK Nair), who was a senior Congress MP and known as the initial nominee to become the first CM of Delhi. In 1958, he became the youngest member of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and the first chairman of its Committee on Delhi Rural Area. He was re-elected to MCD in 1962. He went on to serve on the Education and Works committees of MCD, and also served as the Deputy Chairman of the Zonal Committee. In 1967, Prem Singh was elected to the newly constituted Metropolitan Council of Delhi (predecessor of the Delhi Legislative Assembly). He was re-elected to the Metropolitan Council in 1972, 1977 and 1983. He served as an Executive Council member during the Fourth Metropolitan Council (1983–1990). Also in 1967, he was elected as a member of the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC), the decision-making body of the Congress in Delhi. In 1969, he became a member of

, the central decision-making assembly of the party. He went on to win consecutive DPCC elections in 1972, 1977 and 1983. He served as the General Secretary of DPCC during 1969–1975, and as its president in 1977 and during 1988–1992. He was elected to the first Legislative Assembly of Delhi in 1993, and went on to win the next three elections in 1998, 2003 and 2008. He also served as the

speaker Speaker most commonly refers to: * Speaker, a person who produces speech * Loudspeaker, a device that produces sound ** Computer speakers Speaker, Speakers, or The Speaker may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * "Speaker" (song), by David ...

of the second (1998–2003) and the third (2004–2008) Assemblies. In 2013, he lost the election to

Aam Aadmi Party The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP, ) is a List of political parties in India, political party in India. It was founded on 26 November 2012 by Arvind Kejriwal and his then-companions, following the 2011 Indian anti-corruption movement against then gover ...

's Ashok Kumar, coming third.

Personal life

Prem Singh lived in the Lado Sarai area of

Mehrauli Mehrauli is a neighbourhood in South Delhi, Delhi, India. It represents a constituency in the legislative assembly of Delhi. The area is close to Gurugram and next to Vasant Kunj. History Mehrauli is one of the seven medieval cities that ...

with his wife Shivkauri; the couple had 6 daughters and 2 sons. His elder son Pramod Choudhary (born 1971) was also elected to the MCD in 2007. Other son Yaduraj Chaudhary ventured into politics as a member of the Delhi Youth Congress. Now his eldest grandson Dev Choudhary (S/O Pramod) has followed suit and entered the political arena at the young age of just 21, ironically endorsing the

Bharatiya Janata Party The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; , ) is a political party in India and one of the two major List of political parties in India, Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. BJP emerged out from Syama Prasad Mukherjee's ...

(BJP) because of its ideology.

Death

Prem Singh suffered a heart attack while participating in a party event on

B. R. Ambedkar Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (Bhīmrāo Rāmjī Āmbēḍkar; 14 April 1891 – 6 December 1956) was an Indian jurist, economist, social reformer and political leader who chaired the committee that drafted the Constitution of India based on t ...

's death anniversary (''Mahaparinirvan Divas'') on 6 December 2017. He was admitted to the Heart & Lung Institute but on 9 December 2017, he was shifted to Max Hospital (Saket), and died there on 12 December 2017 after having 4 more heart attacks.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Prem 1932 births 2017 deaths Indian National Congress politicians from Delhi Delhi MLAs 1998–2003 Speakers of the Delhi Legislative Assembly Delhi MLAs 2008–2013 Delhi MLAs 2003–2008 Delhi MLAs 1993–1998 Zakir Husain Delhi College alumni